Blood Legacy (PULSE Vampire Series #6) by Kailin Gow Read Free Book Online Page B

vampire has ever had quite so much of your blood before – and we know just how strong your blood can be. He may be resistant to the rubies now – I don’t know. All I know is that he’s likely gone out to turn vampires, to rebuild his army.”
    “He drank from me,” the memory was hazy now, like a cloudy morning. “I almost died.”
    Octavius’ eyes darkened at the thought. “If he’d had one more gulp of you,” Octavius said gravely, “he would have drained you dead. And I…it would have killed me, too. I saw that when I saw him drain you. I saw what an effect you had on me. I saw my own weakness so palpable and plain in my love for you.” And then he pulled her in for a kiss. Kalina gasped in surprise – Octavius had not initiated a kiss with her in so long, always letting her chase him, wait for him, want him… But this time it was his turn to give in to their desires; she felt his mouth upon hers, felt him share his longing with her, his loss and his love. It was the kiss she knew he had held back for so long – and yet would hold back no longer. She felt her heart respond to him and to his blood; she felt herself grow weak-kneed with desire. They were together, beneath the falling snow, their minds and bodies and souls and blood all twined at last in the dizzying sensation of that kiss.
    She never wanted him to let go.

 
    Chapter 7
     
     
    A s they broke apart, their bodies still aching to stay alongside each other, Kalina was shaking. Her body had never quivered like this – the cold of the snow mingling with the heat of her longing. She had never felt as close to Octavius as she did right now. But it was more than physical proximity that made her feel that way. Something was different. Her blood was prickling more than normal – it was responding to his blood in a way she had never seen before. Her skin seemed to glow at his touch; her eyes sparkled as she beheld him.
    “It’s so strange...” She sat up, her strength returning. “Molotov almost drained me. But now I feel…almost fine.” She stretched out her hands, looking down on the blue veins, the milky white skin. “Whole again?”
    “You were sick, Kalina,” Octavius murmured. “You’d passed out. When we landed here, at the bottom of the mountain, you were about to die. And, my God, I would do anything to save you. Anything. You would have died – Molotov was gone, but you’d still lost so much blood. You were whiter than the snow banks. And I just thought to myself – I cannot live without her. I must save her. I would have asked, but there was no time. You were unconscious; your skin was freezing. I kissed you – I placed my hands all over you – but I couldn’t warm you up. And so I did what I had to do.”
    Now Kalina understood. She looked into Octavius’ eyes, her gaze cool but full of love. “You gave me your blood,” she whispered. “Is that it?”
    He nodded. “My love, I know the dangers of the act. I knew that it would make the connection between us stronger than ever. It would make your feelings worse for me than they already were. But it, too, would weaken my own resistance against you. It would make me love you more. And it has, my darling Kalina. I feared that you would die with my blood in you and turn – a fate worse than death, Kalina. But it was the only chance I had at saving you. And I was selfish. Willing to take that risk if it meant not losing you – just as I did for Stuart and Jaegar so many centuries before. It is my greatest weakness: I cannot bear to lose those I love. Perhaps I acted selfishly in doing so. But you did not die. You survived.” His voice was low and warm, velvety in its richness. “And now our bond is stronger than ever.”
    “Then you wouldn’t turn me,” Kalina whispered. “If I wanted you to?” She didn’t want to be a vampire – but she already suffered from the hunger pangs, the vampire cravings. How much worse could it be to be made immortal? If Octavius